Sailing vessel



July 28, 1964 J. B. NICHOLS 3,142,282

SAILING VESSEL Filed Aug. 9, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 2717 -27c I F i g. 3

F i g 2 20 INVENTOR. John B. Nichols Attorneys July 28, 1964 I J. B.NICHOLS 3,142,282

' SAILING VESSEL Filed Aug. 9, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 I mu f 0, Fig.4

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20 f T-JO \V -ZS 'QM' Fig.6

INVENTOR.

John B. NiChOIS BY #jflw Attorneys July 28, 1964 .1. B. NICHOLS SAILINGVESSEL 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 9, 1962 R m N w W.

John B. Nichols BY QMMW Attorneys United States Patent 3,142,282 SAILINGVESSEL John I Nichols, 97 Euclid Ave., Atherton, Calif. Filed Aug. 9,1962, Ser. No. 215,996 Claims. (l. l14102) The invention relates to asailing vessel, and more particularly to a sailing rig for vessels suchas sailboats and the like.

The sailing rig of many modern sailboats, sailing yachts, and similarcraft usually includes a mainsail supported intermediate the ends of thevessel and a jib sail supported at the forward end portion thereof. Thefunction of the jib sail is at least two-fold: first, it acts as anordinary sail in the sense that the air stream is effective thereon toimpart motion to the vessel; and secondly, it makes the mainsail moreeffective in that the jib sail is intended to be positioned at a lowerangle of attack to the air stream than the mainsail and serves to guidethe air stream around the leading edge of the mainsail which obviatesthe development of a condition of stall along such leading edge thereof.In the absence of a jib, the mainsail could not efiiciently operate atrelatively high angles of attack with respect to the air stream, and thevessel would not be able to point as high or angle as sharply into thewind when moving in the windward direction.

The evolution of the sailing rig has been, to a great extent, one ofcontinually increasing the size of the jib sail in comparison with thesize of the mainsail, and performance improvements have paralleled suchincreases in the size of the jib. As a result, it is not uncommon todayto see vessels equipped with Genoa jibs in which the clews (the loweraft corner of the sail) thereof extend as far aft as the clew of themainsail when the vessel is pointing or moving in the windwarddirection. Such large jib sails have a serious disadvantage, however,and it concerns the handling characteristics thereof. That is to say,each time the vessel is tacked or changed from one windward course toanother, the jib must be shifted from one side to the other of themainsail mast which necessitates moving the clew of the jib forwardly,around the mast, and then rearwardly to its aft operating position onthe opposite side of the mainsail.

Thus, the operator not only has to tend the rudder and manipulate themainsail, but he must also manipulate the jib sail which involvesrepeatedly loosening and tightening the sheets (lines fastened to thesail to control the set thereof in relation to the air stream) thereforand shifting such sail from one side to the other of the mainsail andits mast. Because of the problems and difficulties inherent in the useof large jib sails, small or working jibs are still used in manyinstances since they can be fitted with a club foot rig which permitsthe small jib to tend itself-flipping from side to side as the varioustacks are madebut, quite evidently, the aerodynamic advantages of thelarge Genoa jib sails are lost when the small jibs are used in theirplace.

In view of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is in theprovision of a sailing rig for sailboats, sailing yachts and similarvessels having a mainsail and jig sail composition that provides theadvantageous aerodynamic characteristics of the large Genoa jib whilealso providing the advantageous handling characteristics of the small orworking jibs.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sailing rig of thecharacter described having an improved mast structure that eliminatesthe need for much of the complex stay and shroud arrangement which isused to stiffen and support conventional masts and which increases aero-3,142,282 Patented July 28, 1964 dynamic drag and thereby detracts fromthe efficient use of the available air stream as the vessel-propellingforce.

A further object is that of providing an improved sailing rigcomposition wherein a pair of transversely spaced mainsails and maststherefor are carried by the sailing vessel intermediate the endsthereof, and wherein a single jib sail forms a part of such rigcomposition and is supported forwardly of the mainsails and may beselectively associated with either of the mainsails in general alignmenttherewith in accordance with the point taken by the vessel to cooperatewith such aligned mainsail and effectively provide therewith theaerodynamic advantages of a large Genoa jibthe jib sail being relativelysmall, however, so that it can be flipped quickly and easily from sideto side as the various tacks are made.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentas the specification develops.

Embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a sailing vessel embodying the invention,alternate positions of the mainsail and jib sail being shown by brokenlines;

FIGURE 2 is a side view in elevation of the Vessel illustrated in FIGURE1;

FIGURE 3 is a front view in elevation of the vessel, but with the sailsremoved and an alternate form of mainmast structure being shown bybroken lines;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged, broken top plan view of the vessel illustratedin FIGURE 1, but with the sails removed;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged, broken vertical sectional view showing theconnection of one of the mainmasts to the deck of the vessel;

FIGURE 6 is a side view in elevation of the vessel, similar to that ofFIGURE 2 but illustrating the mainmast structure in the lowered positionthereof;

FIGURE 7 is a front view in elevation of a modified sailing vessel; I

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged, broken side view in elevation illustrating theconnection of one of the booms to a mainmast;

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged, transverse sectional view taken along the plane9-9 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 10 is essentially an enlarged, broken side View in elevation,partly in section, illustrating a modified rig for controlling the jibsail; and

FIGURE 11 is a broken top plan view of the vessel shown in FIGURE 10,but with the mainsails removed and the masts shown in section.

The primary form of sailing vessel illustrated in the drawings may havea substantially conventional hull 15 which ordinarily is equipped with adepending keel 16. Thus, the hull may be fabricated in accordance withany of the presently used and well known techniques, and the sectionalillustration of FIGURE 5 is intended to be typical thereof. Accordingly,the hull 15 has upwardly extending side walls 17 secured to the upwardlyextending frame elements 18 which are supported at their upper ends by amain frame component 19. A deck Ztl is secured to a plurality oflongitudinally spaced transverse frame members 21 that, at theiropposite ends, may be fastened to the main frame component 19 and tocertain of the upwardly extending frame elements 18. The precise detailsof the construction of the hull 15 are not germane to the presentinvention, and with respect thereto the vessel exemplifies the usualsailboat, sailing yacht or similar craft.

The vessel is equipped with a pair of mainmasts 22 and 23 that aredisposed in spaced-apart transverse alignment intermediate the ends ofthe hull 15 somewhat forwardly of the transverse center line thereof.The

masts 22 and 23 are respectively located adjacent the outer rails of thehull; and therefore, they may be respectively referred to as thestarboard and port masts. As shown most clearly in FIGURE 5, each of themasts is pivotally carried by the hull for swinging movement betweengenerally vertical and generally horizontal positions, as indicated inFIGURE 6. To accommodate such movement, each of the masts is hingedlymounted upon the deck as by means of a support 24 of generally U-shapedconfiguration, the base of which is rigidly secured to the deck and mainframe component 19 by bolts or screws or other similar fastenerstructures.

The lower, base end of each mast is equipped with a reinforcing cap 25that is received between the upwardly extending ears of the associatedU-shaped support 24; and extending through each mast, cap, and ears ofthe support therefor is a pin 26 that defines the pivotal axis for suchmast. Evidently then, the masts are swingable about the pivot axestherefor between the horizontal and vertical positions shown in FIGURE6; and with the particular construction described, the masts areswingable through substantially 180. As seen in FIG- URE 3, the masts 22and 23 are mechanically interrelated by a plurality of transverselyextending struts or cross braces 27 that are fixedly connected at theiropposite ends to the respective masts. In the particular illustration,there are five such cross braces which, for identification, are denotedwith the numerals 27a through 27c; and such cross braces are spaced fromeach other along the length of the masts. The masts 22 and 23 may befurther rigidified by a plurality of stiffeners such as the angularlyoriented tension wires 28 shown in the drawings.

The starboard and port masts are maintained in a generally verticalposition, as shown in FIGURE 2, by fore and aft stays 29 and 30-thefirst of which may be anchored at one end to the transverse brace 27band at its other end to the deck 20, and the second of which may beanchored at one end to the cross brace 27a and at its other end to thedeck of the vessel. It will be appreciated that addition stays may beemployed if necessary or desirable; and various additional arrangementsmay be used to further lock the masts in the vertical position thereofas, for example, a pair of removable locking pins (not shown)respectively extending through the vertical ears of the supports 24 andthrough the lower ends of the masts and the caps 25 thereon.

The masts 22 and 23, as is most apparent in FIGURE 3, are substantiallyparallel but may be angularly disposed, as shown in broken lines in thatfigure; and in such event the masts (denoted 22' and 23' foridentification) will angle upwardly and inwardly toward each other andmay be fastened in substantially contiguous relation at their upperends. An inverted V-shaped configuration of such type can reduce therequirement for cross bracing and stiffeners since the basic rigidity ofsuch triangular orientation would reduce the need therefor, therebyreducing the weight of the sailing rig and.

also the aerodynamic drag thereon. In this arrangement, the masts couldalso be used as positive guides for the trailing edge of the jib sail,which will be described hereinafter.

An inverted, generally V-shaped mast structure is also especially usefulwith a catamaran vessel, as shown in FIGURE 7. Such a vessel, as is wellknown, has transversely spaced hulls or buoyant members 15a and 15binterconnected and unified by transverse connector structure 20a. Thevessel shown has extending upwardly from the respective hull members 15aand 15b thereof a pair of mainmasts 22a and 23a supported for pivotalmovement between generally vertical and horizontal positions by supports24a and 241), as heretofore described. A plurality of cross braces 27through 27h may be used to add rigidity to the masts, and stiffenerelements 28a may be incorporated in the mast composition forthe samepurpose. The masts are maintained in the vertical position shown by oneor more fore and aft staysa single forward stay being shown in FIGURE 7and denoted therein with the numeral 29a.

Respectively carried by the masts 22 and 23 for swinging movementrelative to the longitudinal axes thereof are booms 31 and 32. The boomsare swingable in either direction about the respectively associatedlongitudinal axes of the masts 22 and 23, as shown in both FIGURES 1 and4; and conventional mounting means may be used to secure the booms tothe masts for such movement. As an example, the arrangement illustratedin FIGURE 8 may be employed and it comprises a segmented sleeve 33circumjacent the mast 22 and constrained thereon against longitudinaldisplacements there along by segmented clamp collars 34 and 35 pinned tothe mast, as shown, or anchored thereto by any other suitable means. Therespective segments of the sleeve and collars may be clamped togetherabout the associated mast by bolts, and extending laterally outwardlyfrom the sleeve 33 is a socket 36.

As shown in FIGURE 8, the socket 36 has a pair of bifurcated ends 37 and38 oriented at with respect to each other; and the end 37 is secured tothe socket 36 by a pivot pin 39 for swinging movement relative theretoand about the axis of the mast 22. The boom 31 is supported in thebifurcated end portion 38 of the socket for swinging movement about agenerally horizontal axis defined by a pivot pin 39a along a generallyvertical plane toward and away from the mast. The pivot pin 39a may bewithdrawn to permit removal of the boom without having to release thesleeve 33 from the mast. The boom 32 and mast 23 are related by the sametype of structure.

Ordinarily, the booms 31 and 32 extend in the same general direction andare spaced from each other, as

shown in FIGURES 1 and 4. Rather than being exactly parallel, however,the outer free ends of the booms converge toward each other as isillustrated most clearly in FIGURE 4. The rear end portions of the boomsare usually linked together so that the booms pivot about the respectivemasts thereof in unison or mechanically enforced synchronism; and in theform shown, such linkage of the rear end portions of the booms isaccomplished through a tie rod 40 that at its opposite ends looselyconnects with slide bars 41 and 42 that are respectively secured to thebooms 31 and 32 and extend therealong in spaced apart relationtherewith. As seen most clearly in FIGURE 9, the tie rod 40 at itsopposite ends slidably engages the bars 41 and 42 and is releasablysecured thereto. Any suitable means for removably securing the tie rodto the bars 41 and 42 may be employed as, for example, the conventionalspring biased latches 43 and 44 slidably related to the tie rod 40 andwhich are adapted to close the arcuate ends or eyes 45 and 46 of the tierod to releasably constrain the same about the slide bars.

As noted in FIGURE 4, the distance between the masts 22 and 23 isapproximately defined by the distance D the length of the tie bar 40 isdefined by the distance D and the minimum length of each of the slidebars 41 and 42 is indicated by the distance D D This dimensionalrelationship in which the length of the slide bars 41 and 42 is at leastas great as the distance D D permits the booms 31 and 32 to swingtogether in either direction to a fully outboard positionsuch swingingmovement to the starboard side being shown in FIGURE 4without firstreleasing or removing the tie bar 40 linking the booms together. Quiteapparently, the tie rod 40 must be removed when the booms 31 and 32 arerespectively swung outboard to their associated starboard and portsides, as illustrated in FIGURE 1.

The masts 22 and boom 31 are adapted to be equipped with a mainsail 46and, in a similar manner, the mast 23 and its associated boom 32 areadapted to be equipped with a mainsail 47. Each of the mainsails may berun up and secured to the associated booms and masts by conventionalrigs which, since well known, are not illustrated. The vessel is alsoprovided with a jib sail 48 that is positioned forwardly of the mainsails and masts 22 and 23 therefor. As seen in FIGURE 1, the jib sail 48at its leading or forward end is located and supported substantiallyalong the longitudinal axis of the hull which is located approximatelymidway between the masts 22 and 23. Such orientation is achieved bysecuring the leading edge of the jib sail 48 along the fore stay 29, asshown 'in FIGURE 2. Securing the leading edge of the jib sail in thismanner may follow conventional practice, and involves the use of a righaving the usual lines and cleates therefor.

The jib sail 48 is relatively small, and the trailing edge thereofextends rearwardly toward the masts 22 and 23 but terminates forwardlythereof. This sail is adapted to be manipulated or swung from side toside in accordance with the point taken by the vessel when moving towardwindward, and such manipulation may be accomplished by the rigillustrated in FIGURES l and 2 in which a single sheet or line 49 issecured to the clew iii) of the jib sail, passes rearwardly between themasts 22 and 23, through a centrally disposed pulley 51 secured to thedeck 29, and is anchored to a cleat 52 also secured to the deckrearwardly of the pulley 51. Although adequate control of the jib sailis achieved through the arrangement described, a conventionalarrangement may be employed in which two control lines or sheets areconnected to the jib sail at the clew 5%) thereof and respectivelyextend rearwardly therefrom toward the cockpit, one along each side ofthe vessel. Additionally, somewhat better control of the jib sail may beprovided if it is fitted with a boom along the lower edge thereof or isprovided with a standard club foot rig.

A modified arrangement affording excellent control is shown in FIGURES10 and 11, and employs a rig having a single sheet 53 secured to the jibsail at an eyelet 54 spaced upwardly from the cleat or lower aft cornerthereof. The sheet passes over a pulley 55 carried by a generallytubular collar 56 slidably mounted upon the cross brace 27e forreciprocable movement between the masts 22 and 23. The sheet 53 thenpasses downwardly from the pulley 55 and is entrained about a sheave orpulley wheel 57 carried by the jib said at the cleat thereof, it extendsrearwardly from the pulley and between the masts 22 and 23, about apulley 58 secured to the deck 20 of the vessel, and is then anchored toa cleat 59 also secured to the deck of the vessel adjacent the cockpitthereof rearwardly of the pulley Wheel 58. Such modified rig permits thejib sail to align itself along one or the other of the masts 22 and 23during a point, and such alignment is substantially automatic in thattransverse movement of the collar 56 is terminated in either directionby abutment thereof with the mast 22 or the mast 23 which, then, act asstops defining the location of the trailing edge of the jib sail. Suchmovement of the collar 56 and jib usually occurs when the tack of thevessel is changed from one direction to another in travelling towindward.

The mainsails may be controlled and manipulated in any convenient manneras, for example, by the rig arrangement illustrated in FIGURE 11 inwhich a sheet 60 is connected to the boom 31, is entrained about asheave or pulley 62 secured to the deck 20, and is anchored to a cleat63 located adjacent the cockpit of the vessel. In a similar manner, asheet 64 is secured to the boom 32, is entrained about a pulley orsheave 65, and is anchored to a cleat 66 also secured to the deck 20adjacent the cockpit of the vessel. Since the booms 31 and 32 areinterconnected at the outer end portions thereof by the linkagecomposition comprising the tie rod 40 and slide bars 41 and 42, thesheets 60 and 64 are not necessarily used together and one or the otherthereof may be sufficient to properly manipulate and control both of the6 sails-the other sheet simply being loosened andmade slack so that itis ineffective.

In use of a vessel equipped with a sailing rig embodying the invention,the masts are erected and secured in a generally vertical position bythe fore and aft stays 29 and 30. The booms 31 and 32 are properlypositioned, and the mainsails 46 and 47 as well as the jib sail 48 arerun up and secured in their erected positions. In 'a downwind run, thebooms 31 and 32 and their respectively associated mainsails 46 and 47generally will 'be swung in opposite directions to the starboard andport outboard positions thereof illustrated in FIGURE 1. In suchorientation, they are disposed in substantially transverse alignment andare generally normal to the direction of the air stream.

The jib sail 48 may be secured in either of the positions shown inFIGURE 1that is, in general alignment with the mast 22 or with the mast-23in which case some use is made thereby of the air stream forpropelling the vessel forwardly. Usually, no advantage is obtained bypositioning the jib sail behind either of the mainsails and in generalparallel alignment therewith, since in such position the jib iseffectively shielded from the air stream and would contribute little tothe forward motion of the vessel and might actually impede the same byaffording resistance to such forward motion.

The twin-mast sailing rig facilitates the advantageous employment of aballoon-type jib sail (not shown) which is frequently used and would belocated forwardly of the masts 22 and 23 with a substantial portion ofsuch sail being in the path of the air stream passing therebetween.Thus, a balloon sail could be utilized advantageously to further propelthe vessel during downstream runs and if used, the jib sail 48 couldthen best be run down.

It will be appreciated that the tie rod 40 must be removed or at leastreleased from one of the slide bars in order to orient the mainsails intheir respective starboard and port outboard positions. However, analternate though less effective sail arrangement could be used in whichboth of the mainsails are swung to either the port or starboardposition-the latter being illustrated in FIGURE 4. In this event, thetie rod 40 would not have to be removed; however, such overlappingorientation of the two mainsails would not make the most efficient andeffective use of the air stream, and would not be employed usually fordownwind runs of any significant duration.

One of the lines or sheets 60 or 64 is ordinarily sulficient to controlboth of the mainsails when they are secured together at their outer endsby the tie rod 40, and the other sheet can simply be loosened so as notto interfere with the control and manipulation of the mainsails.However, both of the sheets 60 and 64 are necessarily employed tocontrol and manipulate the respective mainsails 46 and 47 when the tierod 40 is removed or re leased as, for example, when the mainsails areswung to their respective outboard positions as heretofore described. Ina downwind run using a conventional single mast and a large Genoa jib,the mainsail is swung outboard in one direction and the Genoa jib swungto an outboard position in the opposite direction; but to maintain thejib in such outboard position it is necessary to secure a whisker poleor small boom thereto. Consequently, with such a sailing rig each time adownwind run is made a crew member must crawl forwardly over the deck toattach such pole at one end thereof to the jib sail, and at its otherend to the vessel, usually to the mainmast thereof.

In substantially all sailing conditions other than the downwind run, themainsails and booms thereof are maintained in a substantially parallelposition in which the booms are linked together and the jib sail 48 isgenerally aligned with one or the other of the mainsails depending uponthe tack thereof. For example, considering the position of the mainsailsas shown by full lines in FIGURE 1, such sails extend rearwardly andoverhang the hull 15 slightly on the starboard side thereof. In suchposition, the jib sail 48 extends rearwardly toward the mainmast 23,and, therefore, is in general alignment with the mainsail 46 andprovides an effective extension thereof. Assuming that the vessel istravelling in a windward direction, it will be pointed slightly into thewind, which in the orientation of FIGURE 1 might have an angle, forexample, of about 45 relative to the longitudinal axis of the vessel andwould be blowing toward the vessel from the port side thereof. Thus, thejib sail 48 together with the mainsail 46 function as a large Genoa jiband, in operating at a lower angle of attack to the air stream than themainsail 47, guides the air stream around the leading edge of themainsail 47 without allowing a stalling condition to develop thereat,which permits the mainsail 47 to function more efficiently at a higherangle of attack. The vessel, then, is thereby able to have a greaterpoint or angular orientation relative to the direction of the airstream.

When the point of the vessel is changed and the tack of the mainsailsshifted to the position shown by broken lines in FIGURE 1, in which thesail 47 extends over the deck 20 and the sail 47 overhangs the deck onthe port side thereof, the jib sail 48 is shifted to a position in whichit is in general alignment with the mast 22 and forms an effectiveextension of the mainsail 47 thereby defining therewith a large Genoajib that guides the air stream about the leading edge of the mainsail46. Since the jib sail 48 does not extend rearwardly of the masts 22 and23, it is readily flipped from one position to another; and suchshifting of the position thereof can be accomplished, in most cases,without loosensing the sheet or control line 49 or 53 thereforthe airstream itself serving to shift the position of the jib sail as the pointof the vessel is changed. Therefore, the advantages of the large Genoajib are obtained without the disadvantages thereof; and in fact, theadvantageous handling and control features of the small or working jibare realized.

Since the masts may be selectively lowered to a horizontal position, itis convenient to work thereon, and the cross bracing between the twomainmasts can be used as a ladder in the event that it is necessary toclimb toward the top of the masts when they are in the vertical positionthereof. Additionally, since the masts are located adjacent the siderails of the vessel, they are directly supported by the main framethereof and it is unnecessary to cut the deck, as is the case with asingle mainsail, to extend the same downwardly to the keel of the vesselto find adequate support for the mainmast or, alternatively, toconstruct a step support for the mainsail below the deck of the vessel.

While in the foregoing specification embodiments of the invention havebeen set forth in considerable detail for purposes of making an adequatedisclosure thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art thatnumerous changes may be made in such details without departing from thespirit and principles of the invention.

I claim:

1. In combination with a sailing vessel, a pair of transversely spacedmasts carried by said vessel intermediate the ends thereof, a pair ofmainsails respectively carried by said masts and each being movableabout the longitudinal axis of the associated mast to afford selectivepositioning of said mainsails, coupling structure linking said mainsailsto each other to enforce synchronous movements thereon in the sameangular directions relative to the axes of said masts, and including apair of longitudinally extending bars respectively connected with saidmainsails and a tie rod slidably connected adjacent the respective endportions thereof with said longitudinally extending bars, the length ofeach of said longitudinally extending bars being at least as great asthe difference between the transverse separation of said masts and thelength of said tie rod, an auxiliary sail carried by said vesselforwardly of said masts, rigging means for controlling said mainsails todetermine a plurality of adjusted positions thereof, and control riggingconnected with said auxiliary sail for selectively orienting the same inassociation with either of said mainsails to effectively provide anaerodynamic continuation of such associated mainsail.

2. The combination of claim 1 and further comprising a pair of boomsrespectively secured to said masts for swinging movements thereaboutrelative to the associated longitudinal axes thereof for supporting therespectively associated mainsails, said longitudinally extending barsbeing respectively supported by said booms, and said tie rod beingequipped adjacent each end thereof with fastener structure for removablyconnecting the same to said longitudinally extending bars.

3. In combination with a sailing vessel, a sailing rig comprising a pairof transversely spaced masts carried by said vessel intermediate theends thereof, a pair of booms respectively secured to said masts forswinging movements thereabout relative to the associated longitudinalaxes thereof, releasable coupling structure linking said booms toenforce substantially synchronous movements thereon in the same angulardirections relative to the axes of said masts, and rigging means forcontrolling at least one of said booms to determine a plurality ofadjusted positions therefor, said coupling struc ture including a pairof elongated bars respectively connected with said booms and extendingtherealong and a tie element slidably connected at the respective endsthereof with said elongated bars, said tie element being equipped atleast at one end thereof with fastener structure for removablyconnecting the same thereat to the associated elongated bar, the lengthof each of said elongated bars being at least as great as the differencebetween the transverse distance separating said masts and the length ofsaid tie element.

4. In combination with a sailing vessel, a sailing rig comprising a pairof transversely spaced masts carried by said vessel intermediate theends thereof, a pair of booms respectively secured to said masts forswinging movements thereabout relative to the associated longitudinalaxes thereof, releasable coupling structure linking said booms toenforce substantially synchronous movements thereon in the same angulardirections relative to the axes of said masts and including a tieelement respectively coupled adjacent the ends thereof with said boomsfor reciprocable displacements relative thereto throughout predetermineddistances along the lengths thereof, each of said predetermineddistances being at least as great as the difference between thetransverse distance separating said masts and the length of said tieelement, and rigging means for controlling at least one of said booms todetermine a plurality of adjusted positions thereof.

5. In combination with a sailing vessel, a pair of transversely spacedmasts carried by said vessel intermediate the ends thereof andconverging upwardly to define an inverted generally V-shapedconfiguration, a main sail carried by each mast and movable about thelongitudinal axis of the mast to selected adjusted positions, riggingmeans for effecting adjustments of said main sails to a plurality ofpositions, an aerodynamically single triangularly shaped auxiliary jibsail forwardly of said masts having aerodynamically single trailing andleading edges, means anchoring the bottom leading corner of said jibsail to said vessel and the top corner of said jib sail to the mastsadjacent the top of their inverted V, and rigging means secured to thebottom trailing corner of said jib sail; the bottom edge of said jibsail being otherwise unanchored to said vessel between the bottomcorners thereof whereby the single trailing edge of said jib sail can bequickly orientated by mere flipping of said rear corner to a positionadjacent either of said masts while said jib sail remains anchored atthe top corner and front bottom corner thereof to enable said jib sailto provide substantially an aerodynamic continuation of a main sail288,819

associated with such mast upon adjustment of said rigging 457,323

means. 1,429,156

References Cited in the file of this patent 2,106,432

UNITED STATES PATENTS 145,648 Hammond Dec. 16, 1873 144 55 10 NorcrossOct. 29, 1878 Kraeger Nov. 20, 1883 Matthews Aug. 4, 1891 Moraitis Sept.12, 1922 Blackman May 3, 1932 McIntyre Jan. 25, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTSSweden Mar. 23, 1954

5. IN COMBINATION WITH A SAILING VESSEL, A PAIR OF TRANSVERSELY SPACEDMASTS CARRIED BY SAID VESSEL INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF AND COVERGINGUPWARDLY TO DEFINE AN INVERTED GENERALLY V-SHAPED CONFIGURATION, A MAINSAIL CARRIED BY EACH MAST AND MOVABLE ABOUT THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THEMAST TO SELECTED ADJUSTED POSITIONS, RIGGING MEANS FOR EFFECTINGADJUSTMENTS OF SAID MAIN SAILS TO A PLURALITY OF POSITIONS, ANAERODYNAMICALLY SINGLE TRIANGULARLY SHAPED AUXILIARY JIB SAIL FORWARDLYOF SAID MASTS HAVING AERODYNAMICALLY SINGLE TRAILING AND LEADING EDGES,MEANS ANCHORING THE BOTTOM LEADING CORNER OF SAID JIB SAIL TO SAIDVESSEL AND THE TOP CORNER OF SAID JIB SAIL TO THE MASTS ADJACENT THE TOPCORNER OF SAID JIB SAIL TO MEANS SECURED TO THE BOTTOM TRAILING CORNEROF SAID JIB SAIL; THE BOTTOM EDGE OF SAID JIB SAIL BEING OTHERWISEUNANCHORED TO SAID VESSEL BETWEEN THE BOTTOM CORNERS THEREOF WHEREBY THESINGLE TRAILING EDGE OF SAID JIB SAIL CAN BE QUICKLY ORIENTATED BY MEREFLIPPING OF SAID REAR CORNER TO A POSITION ADJACENT EITHER OF SAID MASTSWHILE SAID JIB SAIL REMAINS ANCHORED AT THE TOP CORNER AND FRONT BOTTOMCORNER THEREOF TO ENABLE SAID JIB SAIL TO PROVIDE SUBSTANTIALLY ANAERODYNAMIC CONTINUATION OF A MAIN SAIL ASSOCIATED WITH SUCH MAST UPONADJUSTMENT OF SAID RIGGING MEANS.